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Ex-Treasury chief Lawrence Summers is departing from the board at the artificial intelligence firm, just a week after a collection of emails between him and deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein became publicly available.

The economist remarked in a release that he was "grateful for the chance to have participated, enthusiastic about the promise of the enterprise, and eagerly await following their advancement".

The former Harvard president, who once headed the Ivy League institution, declared on earlier this week that he would be stepping back from public responsibilities due to his connections with the convicted sex offender.

Message Exchange

The newly public messages revealed that Summers corresponded with Jeffrey Epstein until the day before his 2019 arrest for accused trafficking of underage individuals.

In a separate statement, the artificial intelligence company said it respected his determination to depart.

"We value his significant contributions and the perspective he provided to the governing body," the organization remarked.

Legislative Background

This announcement comes after the two houses of the US legislature voted on this week to pass a measure that would mandate the US justice department to release its documents on Jeffrey Epstein.

The measure will subsequently move to the office of US President Donald Trump for approval. The President has said he expects to approve the bill, after modifying his position on the issue following pressure from his base.

Message Details

A batch of financier-linked emails made public by the House Oversight Committee days ago referenced multiple high-profile figures in the Epstein's past associates, without implying any legal wrongdoing by those individuals.

The messages indicated that the professor and Jeffrey Epstein regularly had dinners together, with Epstein often trying to introduce Summers to notable international personalities.

Individual Statement

After the emails were released with the general audience, he stated he accepted "total ownership for my ill-advised choice to maintain corresponding with Mr Epstein".

He further stated that he hoped "to reestablish faith and mend relationships with the persons most important to me".

Career Background

The economist occupied high-level positions under Democratic administrations; acting as economic leader under the former president, and as head of the economic advisory body under Barack Obama.

He headed Harvard from 2001 to 2006 and remains a academic there. When declaring his withdrawal from public roles recently on Monday, he said he would maintain his educational duties.

Further Repercussions

Following the economist's declaration on earlier this week, the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning research organization in DC where he was a prominent member, announced that Summers was not affiliated with the institution.

The former official became part of the directorate of OpenAI, which creates the AI chatbot, in 2023 - following a unsuccessful effort to replace its CEO OpenAI's head.